Colleges buzzing about energy drink sales ban

The University of New Hampshire’s short-lived decision to ban the sale of nonalcoholic energy drinks has created more buzz than the caffeinated beverages themselves.

Within four days of announcing it would ban the sale of Red Bull and three other drinks, the university first delayed and then abandoned the plan altogether. The backtracking highlights both the drinks’ popularity among young adults who use it for both study and play, and the extent to which college administrations have become entangled with the beverages’ promotion.

UNH initially said it would stop selling the drinks beginning in January, apparently a first. The university said the ban would further President Mark Huddleston’s goal of making the campus the nation’s healthiest by 2020 and cited the dangers of mixing the drinks with alcohol.

But Huddleston issued a statement Thursday saying that there was no clear evidence that the drinks are exacerbating alcohol abuse and that sales data showed students aren’t purchasing multiple servings, which might have suggested binge drinking.

“I do not now see a clear rationale for eliminating an option that our students say they want,” he said.

Students weren’t happy about the idea of a ban and said it would have done little to curb alcohol problems, since students buy the energy drinks off campus.

Sophomore Corrin Murphy sent her roommate a text message Monday as soon she heard about the ban. On Tuesday, her epidemiology class discussed whether students would seek out prescription drugs if they could no longer buy energy drinks. And it was the first thing her friends brought up Wednesday morning, when she sat down in the student union building with a can of Red Bull to get ready for a chemistry quiz.

“Every class I’ve been in, everyone’s been in an uproar,” she said. “I haven’t seen anyone who’s for it.”

Huddleston’s statements delaying and then reversing the ban made no mention of input from energy drink manufacturers, though Red Bull said it was working with UNH “to find a resolution.”

UNH said a total of 60,000 drinks — including the other brands— were sold on campus last year, or one-half of 1 percent of retail sales. Officials would not comment on the university’s ties to Red Bull or further discuss what led to the ban and its reversal, but the company’s promotions have been a big part of students’ activities.

The company, with the administration’s blessing, brought a motorcycle show to the university’s spring picnic, had Red Bull skydivers drop into the football stadium at the start of the homecoming game, and gave away a snowboard and lift pass prize package to students. It has similar relationships with hundreds of other colleges and universities.

UNH also is one of nearly 700 campuses participating in Red Bull’s “stash” contest, in which students search for four-packs of the drinks around campus in hopes of winning prizes worth a total of $224,000. Last fall, a Red Bull student “brand manager” at UNH organized a skateboarding competition, with a case of Red Bull given to winners in several categories, according to an article in the student newspaper.

“We have so many Red Bull-sponsored events,” said Murphy, who keeps a 24-pack of Red Bull in her room and said she frequently sees fliers advertising campus events sponsored by Red Bull.

Energy drinks are the fastest growing U.S. beverage market, with sales expected to top $9 billion this year, according to a report published in the medical journal Pediatrics in February. Hard figures are hard to come by, but those sales skew toward younger consumers, said John Sicher, editor and publisher of Beverage Digest. Consumption is heaviest among 18- to 35-year-olds, he said.